How Many Press Releases Do You Send Out Per Month?

Posted on May 8, 2008 by George Carson

Your pr marketing strategy should include a series of press releases each month. So what is the total number of press releases to send per month? We recommend at least three per month. You don’t want to issue the same release every other week, but rather find a new angle, or create new releases each week.

publicity press releases We do not recommend flooding the media with dozens of press releases, especially if they are not newsworthy. That will get you negative publicity and probably be recognized as a pest to the media.

Your pr marketing strategies should outline for your pr clients a series of releases to meet the objectives of your publicity campaign. For example, if a pr client is introducing a new product, that warrants a press release. When the product has an impact, or makes an improvement to something, this can be another press release. Basically, follow through with the first press release to see how you can continue to get media attention. Reporters and publishers need good content and stories for their readers, so when writing your pr clients press releases, give them solid information that will want readers to learn more.

Keep away from “sales writing”. Press releases need to be informative, give features as to why the product or service was developed. Tell how it will affect the market, or industry. That is what reporters are looking for in their publications.

If you need help in getting your pr marketing strategy, or publicity campaign in gear, give us a call. We have the contact and expertise to get you noticed. Make the call; it can be the step you take that advances you ahead of the competition.

Blogging or Press Releases, which is better?

Posted on April 25, 2008 by George Carson

With all the activity and “publicity” that business blogging has received this past year, pr clients, and publicity professionals are clamoring to get a blog site for themselves and companies. Is having a business blog the best choice or just a publicity campaign the way to go?

Good question, but there isn’t one answer. First you need to do some soul searching about what it is you are business blogging, blog sites trying to achieve. If you are a pr client that has a product to launch, or a service to promote, then a publicity campaign is what you need. With that said, let’s back up a second. Keeping in mind that publicity press releases are good, an article is best. Look at your pr marketing strategies that you are developing. While you may not get an article in a publication, or it may be a few months before that reporter gets your article published, then consider incorporating a business blog site to further the exposure. The blog will also get you noticed sooner. And you have more control as to what can be said. Unlike an ad, you don’t want your business blog site to be all commercial. Keep to the facts, make it interesting and give some examples as to why this new product can improve things like a person’s lifestyle, or a company’s profits. Basically, make it productive, not a sales pitch.

This brings us back to creating a solid pr marketing strategy for your pr client, or company. Make sure that your pr marketing strategies include a well-planned publicity campaign. This should consist of a business blog, a promotional program, a series of press releases and an article that can be submitted to reporters, editors and publishers in your industry. I read an article called “Is your press release passive?” Other tips on good pr writing can be found at their main site. This touches on a few important issues in writing releases. This can also be a simple guide in writing your blog for that new product or service. business blogging, blog sites

So what have you learned in this blog? Hopefully that a business blog is as important as your publicity campaign. Ok, I need to now explain that just having a blog on the web doesn’t get you noticed. It requires a lot of backend marketing. A couple of years ago, a simple blog site was all you needed and it got a lot of attention. Today, you need to market your business blog site. That brings me to our company, Carson Marketing, Inc. We can market your business blog site. If you do not have a business blog, then we can help put your company into the blog sphere so that you get noticed. Give us a call. We’re just 10 numbers away at 949-477-9400 to making you a successful blogger.

Rolodex of Reporters

Posted on September 22, 2006 by George Carson

Keep an updated list of the reporters

reporters and editors Every time you write a press release for you pr clients, you need to make sure you already have a media list formulated. A mistake is to send each release to every media on your Rolodex listing. That doesn’t help get your company or pr client noticed.

By targeting specific writers or reporters with your press releases, or articles can better improve your chances to get published. If you are doing your own publicity in-house, then be sure that your database of reporters is current. Media people move around a lot and having a current roster of names that match the media is good practice, and it will reduce embarrassing follow-ups.

It is worth your time to categorize a reporter’s list for each client. Even if your publicity firm specializes in a specific market, you will soon learn that certain media will become more familiar with an account or company. That can work in your favor. Knowing reporters, writers, or any media on that level can further a relationship with the press.

These tips may seem common sense, and I hope that you are using them. But the reality is, as common sense goes, we tend to ignore these tips and soon become unknown with the press because of little things like keeping your database of reporters current.

If you feel that your list may not be current, then contact a outside company, even another pr firm, to help with the launch of the publicity campaign. Then begin working on your list.

Publicity and Email

Posted on August 11, 2006 by George Carson

One is a series

Email marketing isn’t new, but how we use this tool for marketing, shows that it is now making positive advances in using email for publicity. To make any publicity campaign successful you need to make sure that all your options of marketing tools and resources are in place. This is not saying to use email to contact reporters, editors or the media. That should be part of your normal activity.

A Study Reveals Reasons To Use Email Marketing
There is a lot of discussion about how email has helped different companies gain recognition and increase sales. Not through spamming, but through controlled distribution. Several new studies show that a majority (out of 259 companies surveyed), 93% use email to reach consumers. This and other studies are important to pr professionals, because it clearly indicates how people rely on email and how they are thinking and how they can be reached.

If you have a pr client and they want to gain awareness, then it is your responsibility to examine the options of email marketing. The study I read, called "Email Goes Viral" shows the marketing tactics of manufacturing companies will increase their spending on email marketing, direct sales and even publicity. As much as a 42% increase on publicity alone! Another Internet activity is Webinars, a 35% increase for next year.

Publicity Agencies and PR Professional Need To Act Now
This should give reason for publicity firms to act upon and use other marketing sources like email. As I have said many times, publicity needs to interact with the IT departments and Marketing departments of a company in order to develop successful campaigns.

How Are Your Communication Skills?

Posted on August 9, 2006 by George Carson

One in a series for publicity tips

Knowing how to write a press release, or an article for publication is in itself a talent, a skill. But do you know how to communicate your pr client to the media? Oh yeah, that’s right, you’re a pr professional, so how can you not know! Well, don’t be surprised, but many of the new people in the industry are just not "listening" to their pr clients. This is alos true of companies that have in-house publicity departments who are probably experiencing this same problem…no one is really listening.

This is a skill that seems to be lacking within the publicity industry. Everyone wants to be heard, but no one wants to take the time to really listen.

Listening is much different than hearing.

For example:

When we are asleep, we still "hear" things. That is how we wakeup to an alarm clock, or a dog barking.
Listening is when you are understanding to what someone is saying

This is the main difference. We are seeing that young publicity professionals are too busy THINKING of what to say in response to the person talking. That holds true with pr people not completely listening to clients about the new product or service they want to promote.

This skill is very important when communicating to the media. The way you speak to a reporter, how you "hear" and Listen" to what they are asking, can make a big difference in getting a story, or a press release published.

Look into getting a refresher course, or ask for help from professional pr people who know how to communicate. There are a lot of sources, courses and books. Make yourself be a good listener, it can only help you communicate better.

How To Structure Your Press Releases

Posted on August 7, 2006 by George Carson

Good structure makes a difference

publicity structure Not all press releases written by professional publicity people or pr clients follow the standard rules for press release structure. This can affect the chances of your release being read, or even published.

Remember, reporters and publishers all have a lot to do, and looking over hundreds of releases a week requires streamlining their time. So if you get too wild with your release structure, you might just get overlooked.

A web site called publicity advisor, gives some good structural advice to help those wanting to get noticed with the media much easier. I know that if you have a good relationship with a specific reporter or media contact that you can break many rules in publicity. But that is limited in your viewpoint, because not every person remains in one place. When visiting the site, you may think, I know this stuff. Ok, maybe you know "most" of it. But are you practicing it?

For example are you aware of this: “If your news release contains a local news angle, putting information about where should be giving high priority at the top. Also try to get your company name as close to the top as possible. This will decrease the chance that they’ll "chop" your company name out of their news coverage, and increase the chance that you get publicity with your release”. That’s just one suggestion in the advice offered. I recommend you go through all the information before making a judgment. You just might uncover something new to help the next release get more attention.

Targeting Your Publicity Release

Posted on July 31, 2006 by George Carson

How to use the Internet wisely

Writing a press release today is not the same as it was several years ago. The Internet has changed how we treat these releases and the words we use. Public Relations firms and pr clients have been quickly learning how to make a press release meet the demand of the new technology.

Just as your web site needs to be optimized, it is just as important that each press release you distribute be optimized when submitting to the online news media. The use of keywords and how they are placed within the text body is critical. Using too many keywords, or phrases will destroy your objective.

The purpose to optimizing press releases and story’s that you are pitching is to help your web site gain higher ranking and position with the search engines. In addition to using the keywords, you need to include your company’s web address. That may seem logical, and most pr firms and clients do include that information. Want to make your release more worthy? Then don’t only list the URL of the web site, but have a link be directed to a specific page that discusses the product or service of that press release.

This will help reporters, or other media people collect more information quickly than searching for it on your home page.

When you combine the technology of today, using search engines, and traditional writing for press releases, you can increase your company’s visibility and traffic. It is best to work with a company that knows how to optimize a press release than trying to learn by trial and error.

Let Reporters Find You

Posted on July 25, 2006 by George Carson

Publicity 101

How many times have you or a pr client tried to contact a customer about an important issue keeping the press informed only to realize they are out of town? Wasted time? Maybe. More than that is the frustration of not reaching that person.

Now imagine a reporter, editor, or publisher trying to contact you, but you were unavailable. Maybe you were at a trade show, or at a new business meeting, or in a seminar, or just traveling.

At first you would think, hey, they’ll leave a message. Not really. These are reporters who have deadlines to meet. They will pass you up and go to the next person on their list.

How do you avoid loosing the call? Simple, leave a voice message on your phone that says, "if you are a reporter or from the press, please call me at (leave a cell phone number), or leave your number and I’ll call back within a couple of hours.

Make sure that you check your office voice mail messages frequently. And if it is your cell phone that you give to the press, be sure to check that message box often as well.

Being available to the press for a story that you are pitching is extremely important. The media works on their time, not yours. Keeping this in mind should make your pr clients realize that positive publicity can only be accomplished when you make yourself available to the press.

What you should not do is send emails of your schedule to the media. That is a waste of time and the reporters are not your secretaries, so respect them and not bother these media people with nonsense emails.

Is Your Copy Worth Reading?

Posted on July 10, 2006 by George Carson

Good pr copy

We live in a fast paced world, not having enough time to read a good book or a complete article. Maybe that’s why blogs are popular, what do you think?

Ok, let’s look at how to get people, like editors, publishers, reporters and your audience to read your copy. It doesn’t matter if you are writing a press release, an article for a magazine, copy for your web site or sales materials. These all need to follow the basic steps of writing clear and concise copy with enough flare to keep the interest of the reader. Your pr clients will at first want more fluff. Following the basic rules will get you more results.

I came across an article titled "Seven Steps to Writing Copy Your Market Will Actually Read". The title alone gives you the feeling that there is some value to reading it, right? Well, that’s the point the author was making.

Daphne Gray-Grant outlines her seven rules in easy to follow language. Most of which is common sense, but in today’s competitive industries, we cannot take things for granted.

A couple of tips are to use short, two-syllable words over three and four-syllables. This she adds is true with sentences. Keep them short. I like the fact she addresses what "short" means. It is about 14 words.

For publicity writing, make sure to eliminate cliches from your press releases, story’s and any letters to editors, or reporters.

Use these tips and maybe you will begin to see positive results.

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Public Relations in Southern California

Tag Archives: reporters

How Many Press Releases Do You Send Out Per Month?

Blogging or Press Releases, which is better?